The 41st hunger games
by WritingInTheArena
Summary: Regan Willoughby is the female district 7 tribute for the 41st annual Hunger games. Starts in the area, ends in the arena. Please read/review/follow :) xx
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER ONE**

10,  
Brace yourself.  
9,  
Feet ready.  
8,  
Keep calm.  
7,  
Focus.  
6,  
Breathe.  
5, 4, 3, 2,  
Ready.  
1.  
Go.  
I pounce off the pedestal and dart forwards for the closest thing to me: a small red backpack. There are tributes all around me, screaming, running. One if the careers has already reached the cornucopia and she's found a trident. That's Aquette, from four. I have to get out.  
But something, possibly greed, drives me forwards and I snatch up another, larger, green backpack. And now I have to run.  
I sprint for the trees to my left. Trees. Trees will give me shelter. I'm from seven. I'm used to trees. But I can't stop to admire the scenery now. I have to run. I have to put as much distance between myself and the careers as possible. I leap over a fallen log and almost trip as I land. No matter. As long as I keep going. Sprinting through the forest is a lot harder than it looks. Half the time I'm ducking, whilst trying to cover my face from the scratchy low branches above, and the rest of the time I'm jumping over various plants and weeds. There's already a rip in my T-shirt. That might be a problem later, but I can't think about that right now. The green backpack is heavy, which I try to take as a good sign. There might be something if worth in it. Or rocks. That happened last year. All the backpacks were just full of rocks. They had to stone each other to death. But the gamemakers are not known for being repetitive. They like surprises. All the worse for me.  
I hear movement behind me and I run faster, heading further into the dense forest. I'm terrified. Not as terrified as I should be, but terrified nonetheless. The adrenaline is coursing through my body and I know if I stop it will take a long time for me to stop shaking. But I'm not stopping yet.  
I'm sprinting flat out, and it's becoming increasingly difficult to breathe. I can do this. I can do it. Just a little further. Just a little further.  
I arrive in a patch of weeping willows. And really, it's the best shelter I'll get. So I quickly scale the thick trunk and find a branch high enough to be virtually concealed, and hard enough to climb up so that the careers won't be able to reach me.  
Once I've settled down into a fork high in the tree I find the red backpack and unzip it.  
Well it's not rocks.  
Actually, I've struck the jackpot.  
In the pack there are a pair of night glasses, rope and three small, sharp knives. This is better than I hoped for.  
But it isn't food of water. And without them, I won't last long enough to use my precious few items.  
But I still have the large green pack. I sling the red pack over my shoulder and tighten it, so it doesn't fall from the tree. I open the green pack and grin.  
Water. Two bottles. This is fantastic. There's also an extra jacket, matches, and crackers, and I can't believe my luck when I see a small axe at the bottom. It has a hood on it that doesn't take long to unstrap. I sigh. The blade is completely blunt. But at least I know how to sharpen them. Otherwise I'd be in trouble.  
BOOM.  
It's over. The cornucopia bloodbath I was lucky to get away from. It's finally ended.  
Fourteen canons. That's... A lot. And it was probably the careers. The deadly, brutish careers.  
I'm going to need that axe.

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Reviews and follows are appreciated :) A lot :) The chapters here will be pretty short for the most part, but still :)

Lucy xx


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

I see the first face on the sky. Both tributes from district 3, (so the careers from 1 and 2 have survived), both from 5 and 6 , the boy from 8, (that meant that my "company" was alive but I suspect he'll die in one or two days because he's not prepared. At least, that was what I saw at the Training Centre), both from 9 and 10, the girl from 11, and both from 12 (I remember a very handsome guy with misty grey eyes. I think the girl had a similar appearance to him). So there we've got the 14 fallen. The night is coming and I need food, for today and tomorrow at least. That was what my mentor, Silvialla had said. But there are no sign of any animals, and I'm starting to get worried: was there only food on the Cornucopia? I mean… It's a great idea to bring us all together. I could survive with my two water bottles for three days but... then?

There is no certainty, I better go and look for something to eat. After checking briefly for the other tributes, I try to walk as quietly as I can… but I´m not a professional hunter. I know I should be, but my parents only owned a cow and we shared it with another family. We basically got all our food from that. Then my big brother, who is 23, fishes the best he finds on the Green Lake. He taught me how to fish but that´s not my passion. What I really like to do is to design clothes. My stylist, Rhionne Hughie, gave me some tips and I learnt a little bit. Maybe if I win I can do what I really love to do with Rhionne's help. At home I just repair the rotten and bored parts of the few clothes we have. The only setback is that it's going to be no help whatsoever in the arena. I can't exactly sew them to death.

I hear voices approaching.

"What do you mean?" that's the girl from 4, Aquette. "Just because she's _tall_ do you think we want her as an ally?" She asks, cynically.

"I think someone's in love..." laughs the girl from 2. She's tiny, but she's as quick and agile as a squirrel. It sounds as if she's making fun of one of the others.

"Listen," says the boy from 4. "Basically everyone in district 7 is tall, but that doesn´t mean anything; I mean, have you _seen_ the boy from there? _He's_ tall, but doesn't know how to fight or even hunt, so no. She's probably just as useless as him. Besides, if he lives through the night, that spear wound will finish him off tomorrow, you mark my words."

"Good job, Cupter." Squirrel says.

"So are we adding the girl from 7 to our team or not?" Asks the girl from 1. I remember her from training. Looks like a princess, long flowing golden hair and honey coloured eyes, only with seemingly no brain.

"I think we should." Says the boy from 1. "She's not just tall. You remember training just as well as I do. She's good with knives, she's fast, and none of us injured her at the cornucopia so she's in a good condition. We really should have her as an ally."

"I told you before," Aquette snaps. "We are not having her as an ally. She'll only slow us down."

I think Aquette is the self-appointed leader of the careers. I may be hidden, but this has been interesting. I thought the careers would be a little less… chatty, but I know what they're like now.

The boy from 1 wanted me to join them... What does that mean?

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Thanks for reading :) I'd really appreciate a review or follow on this story :)

I promise to update regularly 3 Love you all!

Lucy xxx


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

I'm still in the tree. The careers left some time ago, and the sun has set over the trees in the distance. I'm still reluctant to get down. Whilst the boy from one may not be a threat, the girl from four, Aquette, is a problem. She's clearly the leader, and probably the fastest. I'm going to have trouble getting away. But if I stay here, the Gamemakers will grow bored and simply flush me out with something more deadly that the careers.

So, reluctantly, I undo the rope from around my waist, and slide down the trunk, falling on my back when I hit the ground. I'm momentarily winded, but I'm ok. It's starting to get cold. The sun provided the only warmth in the arena, and now that it has set, it must be somewhere near freezing. I dig around in my backpack, find the night glasses, and pull on my second jacket. And, for extra safety, I pull out the axe. I had ample time earlier in which to sharpen it, and now the blade almost glints in the faint moonlight.

Not for the first time, I wonder if I'll be able to use it. Of course I could in self-defence. I'm not stupid. I know when it's necessary. But in cold blood? I'm not a hunter. The most I can catch is a rabbit, and even then, only with snares. Although… District 7 is dangerous. It's so huge and the forests are so dense, bears are common. We hunt them in packs. I say we… I generally just stick around at the rear, and watch the group's backs.

I separate the long willowy vines and peek out. It's safe. That, or someone is very well concealed. I can see everything in these glasses.

Creeping out, I take in my surroundings. The forest is extremely dense. This is a good thing. I'm used to this kind of terrain. Whereas the careers and those who live in the industrialised districts (like 3 and 5) will have no clue. I bet the boy from eleven is having a great time. They climb. This is his territory too. He's yet another threat to add to my ever growing list.

There's a sharp sound of a twig snapping off to my right and I spin, axe at the ready. It's a fox. Just a fox.

I breathe a sigh of relief and relax a little, although my heart is still pumping fast. It gives an almost strangled barking sound and then darts off into the foliage. I'm slightly surprised at myself. It couldn't have taken me more than two seconds to turn on that fox. The first thing I did was pull out my axe. What does that say about me? If that had been a tribute, would I have struck?

I have to be more alert. I didn't see that fox coming until it was almost right next to me. If it had been a career, I'd be dead. I slowly move onwards through the forest. From what I can remember of the arena I could see at the cornucopia, it was just forest. Only forest, with a clearing in the middle to make space for the cornucopia. Although who knows? Maybe there are lakes or valleys here too. I really do need to stop and sleep at some point. It will be my best chance. The audience in the Capitol are usually content with letting us survivors all sleep on the first night, because of the bloodshed earlier on. So eventually, after I've been walking for what feels like hours, I climb another tree and belt myself in. I hear something howl in the distance.  
It's going to be a long night.

Some while later, I slide down the tree trunk, and start walking in the opposite direction from where I heard the howl. It's nearly ten o'clock and I'm starting to feel the effects of hunger. There are no animals here, just trees blowing their leaves over my path. I sit on the ground and look at the sky: maybe, even if I won, I wouldn't feel free. But If I can fight, I will. I survived past the Cornucopia, and I can survive until the end.

I shake myself and stand up. I have to be alert; this is the Hunger Games, and action is mandatory.

Today's the first day, and people do not like me as much as they love the Careers, at the very least, they do not like me enough to let my mentor send me something. At the interview the Capitol knew me as a tall quiet girl with a simple green dress who was probably not going to last for very long. I wonder if they felt surprised about my escape from the Cornucopia. _Nevertheless_, I thought as I reached the conclusion: _I am not going to receive food from my mentor today_. The cornucopia… Oh god.

The Cornucopia.

Where most of the tributes die… and where the Careers are right now. I don't imagine they've started combing their way through the woods just yet. I need to continue walking to make it as far away from there as I possibly can.

As I move onward, with every step I take, there's a sweet, cloying fragrance that seems to invade my senses. The trees are getting bigger, and every time more colourful. They're full of beautiful flowers, and as I move onwards I see the grand view of the lake.

It's relatively small, the water a deep, crystalline blue. Around the outside of the lake there are flowers of all colours and sizes. Has anybody else found this place, or is it only me? I walk forwards, looking briefly behind me. It's still dark, but the moon is bright and I can see quite well, especially with my night glasses. The water is close and I'm stood at the lakes edge, peering down.

In the surface I can see my reflection. My fishtail plait is still miraculously intact but I've got small cuts and scrapes all over my body and face.

It's as I'm trying to scrape some of the dried blood off my face that a silver fish darts across my reflection, causing it to ripple and become disproportioned. I stand up, grinning. There's fish. And I know exactly how to get at them.

I use a method that my brother taught me, that consists in tying many flowers in a rope, which will attract the fish. By ten minutes, I've got one. I wonder if my brother is watching… Would he be proud of me?

As I eat I realise the fish's flesh tastes familiar... I know I've tried this before. Oh, yes! How could I not recognize it? It's a bloffinch! Bloffinches are these real big fishes that feel attracted by the colourful flowers and sweet scents. They're easy pickings and taste pretty good, so they're common food back in 7. At this very moment, I feel like I belong to district 4.

BOOM! A cannon tears me away from my thoughts. I really have to admit I get easily distracted.  
District 8 tribute girl was out of the Games. How did she die? I don't know. I remember her, I have good memory: a short beautiful girl with curly brown hair, maybe the same age as me (15), and at the interview she wore a big shinny magenta dress. Shimmer (district 1 tribute girl) and Squirrel were jealous of her. Maybe they were the ones who killed her.

The careers are the type to kill out of jealousy.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

I pick up my things and leave the lake side. The cannon was close and I can't afford to stay here much longer. I'm already exhausted from the two days of pure movement, with little rest in between. Thankfully I remembered to refill my bottles from the lake. It's not the cleanest water, but it's much better than nothing. The sun is beginning to rise and my vision is becoming slanted, so I remove the night glasses and shove them in my backpack.

I wonder what the careers are doing. Still on the prowl? Although I have to admit, most career groups restrict their hunting to night-time, when we're at our most defenceless. I re-enter the forest. This seems like a smart thing to do, as I know this terrain. Though I doubt Squirrel's having much trouble. This part of the forest is mostly large thick oak and, to my annoyance, they're sparsely placed. I may as well be out in the open. I'm walking carefully, trying not to snap on too many twigs when I hear them.

"Hey! Hey, there she is!" Shouts Squirrel, running for me. The entire career pack is just ahead. I need to run. They begin pursuit and I bolt off, trying to keep a sustainable distance from them. They won't give up. So I have to hide. Another willow and pine section is coming up. I have to hide now or never. I dart through the long tendrils of a willow tree and quickly scale it, hoping they will not be able to see me. In climb as I high as I possibly can, and try to conceal myself.

It doesn't work.

They're at the bottom of the trunk right now.

"We have you now Regan!" Yells Shimmer, smirking. And they do, unless I can think of a way to get out soon. Squirrel starts to climb the tree, but I must have weakened a branch or two because it snaps and she falls off, crying out and rubbing her ankle.

"You are going to PAY for that!" She screeches up at me. She stands up and then almost immediately falls over. She's hurt her ankle. The boy from two leans down and whispers something to her. She bats him away.

"It's just a sprain! I'm fine!" She snaps. The boy from two rolls his eyes.

"In any case, we can't get up that… So now what?" He asks. The boy from one is quiet, but the district four boy, whose name I think is Neptune, steps forwards.

"We burn it."

I swallow. That would kill me even before the flames touched me. Smoke rises. And I have no intention of asphyxiating to death.

"That could start a forest fire, dumbass." The district one boy rolls his eyes. He knows better. If they were careful in controlling it, and waited for a drop in the winds, it's likely to only affect this one tree. He doesn't want me burnt. How touching.

"Well do you have any bright ideas?" Neptune asks, rudely.

"Ugh. I'll deal with this." Aquette snaps. She steps to the front of their little group and picks up her trident.

"I wonder if you'll hear your own cannon." She smirks, and then throws it straight at me. I suddenly experience a brutal adrenalin rush. I jerk left and it scrapes by me, opening up a gash on my arm. The adrenalin is stopping the pain. For now. Meanwhile I'm stuck n shaking badly until one of them realises they can simply use a spear. It was luck I moved the last time. Chances are, next time I won't be so lucky.

"You know what you've got to do. You're the best of us with spears." Aquette said harshly to the boy from two.

"Here you go." announces Shimmer handing the boy from two the spear. He looks disdainfully at her, but she only giggles and blinks her big golden eyes. He raises the spear.

My end is coming. I'm struck by a sudden vision of the ground becoming soaked with red, and my family being forced to watch.

He throws the spear. And yet, this boy, the brute from 2, who's spent his entire life preparing for this, misses. Not by very much, but the spear is embedded in the tree next to me. I yank it out and grip it tightly. I look down, intending to say thanks, but the sight below takes me by surprise.

It's the boy from 11. He's just as big as the boy from two, and he looks absolutely furious. He takes a kind of knife I never seen before (a large curved blade) and draws it across the boy from two's neck, slicing… the most part of his head off. Shimmer screams.

BOOM. One less tribute alive.

"Cupter!" cries Squirrel. She looks up at the boy from 11, her expression murderous. "You are going to pay for this!" She screams at him.  
Squirrel takes a small, sharp knife out of her jacket but Aquette stops her and instead fires an arrow at the boy from 11. He dodges it.

Then the scene changes completely. Both Squirrel and Aquette are trying to kill the district 11 boy, who's running. Shimmer and Neptune flee the scene, away from the other two murderous tributes, taking off in the same direction as each other. A mangled corpse lying sprawled out on the ground, and the boy from one, choosing to stay. That's all I can see.

They've all left, except the District 1. Has he forgotten I'm here?

It's just as I'm thinking that when he looks up at me. I'm taken aback, but I have a spear, and I go on the defensive/mocking side.

"Go on then. Kill me" I challenged him, because I knew he hadn't the guts to really do it.

"No." he answered me. "Come here, I'm not going to kill you. Look, I couldn't have let them burn the tree down earlier, and I stopped them. Besides, I only got water, glasses and a sword. I promise not to use on you either. The rest is at The Cornucopia."

I think twice about it, and then realise he probably couldn't kill me. I've more weapons than him and he previously wanted me as an ally. I get the feeling he felt uncomfortable with his Career _friends_.

BOOM. Who is it now?

I get off the tree carefully with the trident and the spear in my hand. He helps me to stand and smiles. I'm stood a little way back from him, weapons in hand, just in case.

"Hi. I'm Flint."

"Regan."

"I know." He says. "I've known it since I saw you at the reaping. The 15 year-old... beautiful girl who was unfortunately chosen to be a tribute. You looked gorgeous at the interview by the way, much prettier than that plastic girl from 1."  
Well. That's a lot to take in. But he has noticed me. So I decide to trust him. I look at him for a moment, making my final decisions. Yes. OK.

"Allies?"

"Allies." He confirms.

"Okay, let me take you somewhere." I smile slightly at him, and start walking, listening for his footsteps behind me. I've still got my weapons. Trust has never come easily to me.

So his name's Flint. He's different from the other Careers. I'm not _interested_ in the Careers at all. To me they're simply the 'bad ones,' although I have to recognize that Flint is good looking: blonde curly hair and brown eyes. In other words: not bad. I know he is not lying to me; he told the other Careers he wanted to have me as an ally and wouldn't do anything to kill me. I believe him. I just don't trust him.

We arrive at my secret place again because I needed a break after my injury.

"Do you know how to treat this?" I ask Flint showing him my arm.

He doesn't answer; he simply pulls out a long spool of bandage from his bag and covered my arm with it. We sit down and I kind of just sit there awkwardly, whilst he massages my injury, worried. He kept his gaze firmly trained on my arm, but I find myself staring at him. As I look into those dark brown eyes, I find myself relaxing. They remind me of the trees at home.

"So who do you think is dead?" I ask him, trying to distract myself. I know he's quiet but maybe he has useful information.

"Shimmer or Neptune." He states, plainly. "They ran away. If Aquette finds them she'll be angry. She'd kill them in an instant."

"So I'm sorry then." I say. "Was Shimmer your friend, back in district 1?"

"Not at all" Flint answers me. "We knew each other but that's it. Besides, if I'm honest, she's just a pretty face. When Aquette and the rest of the Careers realize, they'll kill her. They just have Shimmer to use her. The career pack is only a pack if it has all the proper districts. They need enough people."

Now I can understand the Career's mind-set. They just get together, train at the Training Centre, and kill every single tribute they see. Then the one who lasts longer is the victor and at any sign of treason, there's one less Career. They don't care for each other at all.

Survival of the fittest, nothing more.

* * *

Thanks for reading! :D Please leave a review, and follow/favourite the story if you liked it :)

Lucy xxx


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

I turn away from Flint and stare into the dancing blue waters of the lake.

"Are you hungry?" I ask him, picking up the spear.

"Sort of. Will be soon. We left everything at the cornucopia." He informs me. I nod and wade slightly into the water. Normally I would use the flowers, but it's the second day and the sponsors will be more active, so I have to impress them.

I close my eyes and try to feel the movement in the water, rather than look. It's very almost calming. I can tell Flint is watching me, be he doesn't say anything. There's a ripple off to my right and I throw the spear down hopefully. When I pull it up, there is a large bloffinch stabbed right through the middle, wriggling about on the end of my spear. I catch myself before I laugh… Normally I would ever make a catch like that. It's virtually impossible. Happily I was lucky this time. I walk to shore.

"You ever tried Bloffinch before?" I ask Flint, smiling a little. He shakes his head, uncertainly. I chuckle and pick up a few pieces of driftwood.

"Hey uh… Is it wise to start a fire? The careers will be angry at the moment." He points out. I shrug, whilst casually noticing the way he uses the words _the careers_. Not_ the rest of them_. He's distancing himself from them.

"We need to eat. And we have a lot of weapons. We're not completely defenceless, so if anyone tried to attack us we'd probably be ok." I reason. He nods and helps me collect the firewood. About ten minutes later, we have a nice warm fire in front of us, flickering away. Of courseit's still daylight, so the smoke is visible, but let them come. We're prepared. The salty driftwood is turning the flames an attractive green colour and I stare into it, appreciating the warmth. I stick the Bloffinch on a stick which I rotate over the fire, and wait until it looks cooked. Then I find another slab of driftwood and use it as a chopping board. One of my three knives makes short work of the fish. I hand Flint a few pieces. It isn't much, but it's the best we can do.

"Thanks." He mumbles. I smile at him and start to eat. A while later, a thought occurs to me.

"How many tributes are left?"

"Uh… Well, I think that's seventeen down. So… there are seven of us left to play." He remarks. I can barely believe it. It's the second day, and I'm almost home. That's an unusual amount gone in the first two days. Maybe it will calm down tomorrow. _Hopefully_ it will calm down tomorrow.

"Do you want to stay here or move?" He asks, which I can't help thinking is considerate.

"Well… People will see the smoke out here, so it would probably be better to leave…" I muse, and then come to a decision. "Yeah. Let's go."

"Flint, can I ask you a question?" I ask him, while we're walking.

"Sure." he answers.

What I really want to know is why he wants me as an ally, but I don't know him enough to ask him that. I have to admit that I trust him, but I have to keep my eyes open, because there's only one winner, and at least one of us will be dead by the end: that's the harsh reality of it all.

So I think twice, and ask him something else.

"What are your skills?"

"I'm good with spears and swords, I'm strong and probably much wiser than the other Careers." he answers, grinning. "Not that that's an achievement." He adds, smirking. Then he looks up at me. "What about you? You're from 7… so either lumberjack or hunter, right?"

"No. I know I should be…" I tell him. "But at home my brother fishes and we own a cow. There's no reason for any of us to go hunting.

Occasionally in the woods I've helped take down a bear or something, but that's not quite the same as this. Usually, I just repair rotten clothes, and we earn money from that. My parents are kind of old, so they do home business and help me at school: they used to be teachers." I tell him, and then realise I've literally just told the entirety of Panem that I'm worthless. Up your game Regan. "But I'm fast, I can use knives, and I know how to fish. More importantly… I know to survive here, much better than the Careers. I guess you guys don't really suffer from hunger." I shrug. Flint thinks for a moment.

"Well... we don't really. The odd family does. District 1 has poor sections too, you know. But the only thing you've got to be afraid of is being reaped, and even then, people usually volunteer to take you place, even if they don't know you."

"You're lucky." I tell him.

"I know." he answers me. I look at him, frowning, trying to figure him out. He looks right back at me, big brown eyes earnest.

So the careers are not as scary as I first thought, or at the very least Flint wasn't. The only tributes I should be wary of are Aquette, Squirrel and the boy from 11. Maybe even from Neptune too. But seemingly not Flint.

We don't talk. We just look at each other and try to find what secrets our eyes hide. He opened his mouth to tell me something, when a voice a little way off, interrupted him. It's someone talking loudly. In other words, the careers. I curse under my breath and dart behind a tree, Flint following my lead. I listen intently to their conversation.

"Do that again and you'll end up like Shimmer." Aquette snarls at someone I can't see. There's no way I'm looking around. They'll see me if I do.

"I know, I know, but you need me, much more than we needed Shimmer." answers Neptune. So Aquette and Squirrel did find them then. Neptune is still talking. "She could only run and scream, but you _know_ me. I'm strong, I'm fast, I know how to fish, I can swim and I can use any kind of weapon." He finishes, and I roll my eyes. _Arrogant much_? But this tells me two things.

First, I _should_ be worried about Neptune, despite his arrogance. Second, the cannon belonged to Shimmer. Aquette killed Shimmer! There is only seven of us left at this point, and I suppose they realised she was more pain than gain. One less Career alive. The boy from 11 has survived but I don't bet he's in a good condition after a run in with Aquette and Squirrel. I can't guess why my district partner is still alive; he isn't as strong as the Careers. Fine, he knows how to hunt professionally, but nothing else. There's a huge difference between hunting and the Hunger games. For one, your prey is intelligent.

"That is why I didn't kill you." Aquette clicks her tongue, annoyed. "Now let's find Flint. Where is he?"

Oh, no. They're looking for Flint. This alliance no longer seems like a good idea at all.

"No idea. But if we find him, I get to kill him." Squirrel snarls.  
"Wait. I know he didn't do anything to help us, but we need him." Aquette again. "Knowing him, he'll be looking for us: he's probably at the Cornucopia."

"And if not?" prompts Squirrel.

"Then we kill him." announces Aquette. Squirrel makes a little sound of satisfaction.

"All right, let's go to the Cornucopia." Aquette decides and I hear their footsteps retreating.

As soon as the Careers were out of earshot, I turned to Flint. What do we do now? Flint doesn't want to go with the Careers, and… Fine I'll admit it: I want him with me. But if he doesn't go, he'll probably be the next victim, and they'll search for him everywhere until they find him.

Come on, Regan, _think_. The secret lake? That was a good idea, but he can't stay there for the rest of the Games and leave me the one who goes out to hunt or fight. If we do that, he's got a higher chance of surviving than me, and much as I value the alliance, I don't want that. It's an alliance, not a friendship. If he goes, he can fake an alliance with Careers, but how would he escape to get back to me? Is it the end of this alliance? I don't want that, I want Flint to be with me.

"So what do we do?" I ask him.

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Thanks for reading! :D I hugely appreciate reviews and if you'd care enough to follow the story I will love you forever 3

Lucy xxx


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

"I'm staying."

"But they'll kill you!" I protest.

"Only if they find me. Which they won't do." Flint reasons. "Besides, we're only allies right? If I die, then that's one less obstacle for you right?"

I'm stunned. A career with that much empathy?

"Don't you want to win?" I ask, slightly pleadingly.

"We all do."

I can't think of anything to say. I don't know whether or not to agree.

"Were they that bad?" I ask finally. He laughs, grimly.

"Oh yes. It would shock you, the things they talked about. The weak tributes mean nothing to them. They treat them like flies. Not worth the bother until they become annoying. And then they kill. They're ruthless, and that's not me." Flint says, powerfully. I blink.

"Well. Then we'd better find a place to camp out." I say finally. Flint smiles and nods. We start to trek through the forest, keeping quiet. After about a mile of walking, we arrive in a new section of the arena. I'm not comfortable here. I want to go back to my lake.  
It's a meadow. Wildflowers everywhere, trees in a perfect circle around the outside. It's beautiful, yes, but I feel uneasy. It's too exposed. At least we know the careers are at the cornucopia. We're safe until they find out that Flint isn't there. As we walk forwards into the meadow, we hear the BOOM of a cannon somewhere in the distance. Six of us left.

"Oh my… Regan look!" Flash points up to the sky. I'm expecting to see the hovercraft, but none appears near us. Instead, a dainty little silver pot held in a silver parachute floats down to us. What is it? We're not in need of anything. I shoot Flash a look as I twist the top off the pot. There's a note inside.

"Watch out. They sting." I read. Inside the pot, there is medicine. I take an experimental sniff. And then almost drop the pot.

"What? What is it?" Flash asks, not nearly concerned enough. I recognise the smell. We have bucket loads of this medicine at home and I know what it's for. More importantly, I know running is the only thing that will save us now.

"We have to go. Now!" I yell. And we bolt into the forest again, just as I begin to hear the sounds of thousands upon thousands of oncoming tracker jackers.

* * *

So the Gamemakers want the Games to finish quickly?

Perhaps the next days the Games will be less intense, or maybe they expected the Games would last longer than the following days because of the Careers... everybody must be wondering what'll happen if the last survivors are Aquette, Squirrel and Neptune.

We're running as fast as we can from the oncoming storm, but some of the tracker jackers have already reached us. I feel a sharp searing pain in my neck, then on my cheek and then on my left leg. It burns and I cry out in pain. Flash touches his shoulder, and starts moaning, but he can run, whereas I can't. They've paralysed me.

As he realizes I can't move he does something unexpected. He waits.

"Go on, run!" I order him "You'll die if you don't!"

He's surrounded by pink butterflies that he oddly isn't bothering to bat away. There are insects crawling all over him! Why isn't he moving! Then I feel Flint's arms surrounding me. He picks me up and starts running, running and running. The last thing I saw before I blacked out was the sky, tied to the ground… a beautiful crystal blue sky.

* * *

It's night when I wake up. The giants I had seen in my hallucinogenic state were trees, the butterflies were seemingly imaginary and the blue sky strapped to the ground was the lake. As soon as Flint reached the lake side he lay me down at the edges of the lapping waters. I'm confused, so I close my eyes for what at first feels like a few seconds, but when I open them again, it's sunrise. I look over at a rock and see my clothes are laid out on it, drying. Instinctively I look down at my body, but I'm still in my underclothes. Not naked. In my underclothes in front of the entirety of Panem… but not naked. I breathe a short sigh of relief and look over at Flint. The sight of him takes me by surprised, and I feel like I should look away. He's in his underclothes too. Instead of looking way though, I tilt my head in admiring interest. I catch myself before I say something stupid and look away.

I trust him more than ever. He saved me, and he would apparently rather die than leave me. He was a hero... my hero. He smiles at me as he sees I woke up.

"Hi," he greets. "You ok?"

"Yes, sure. I just..." I pause, wondering if I should just say it. "I can't believe a Career saved me and wanted me to stay alive that badly." Ok, I know I was a little bit rude but it was the truth. He was from District 1, and he was interested in a girl with little chances of winning. No, scrap little chances of winning; make it _no_ chances of winning.

"Hey!" he says laughing. "Well, bit was the right thing to do. I covered your stings with the medicine my sponsor sent us, by the way. It seems they like our alliance." He remarks, looking out over the lake, smiling a little.

"Good. And thanks… Thanks for saving me, Flint." Thanking him was the least thing I could do. He saved my life and got us medicine: I'd be dead without him.

"It's an alliance. We help each other out. Thant's how it works, right?" He asks me, grinning. I want to point out that he's just described _friendship_, but I just nod.

"I don't know... People like _you_, and it's impossible not to do that." I blurt, before I have the sense to stop myself. As I look at him, he blushes a little bit but honestly? That only made him look much hotter. God, I need to stop thinking like this. There's one winner, and if it's going to be me, I've got to shut up and start thinking properly. He suddenly looks up and grins at me. He reaches behind the rock he's sat on and pulls out a spear. There's two Bloffinches stabbed on it.

"Look, I fished some Bloffinches, using the spear, are you hungry?" He asks me, proudly.

I start laughing. He didn't know how to fish Bloffinches. I wish I could have seen him trying to catch one with the spear.

"What is so funny?" he asks.

"Nothing." I reply, shrugging away my amusement. "Before eating let's get dressed. I'm freezing."

Of course that wasn't true. I just felt uncomfortable in only my underclothes. We get dressed and start eating. A little while later we hear Panem's anthem and see my district partner's face on the sky. Sooner or later he was going to die. The tracker jackers may have killed him. He must have been hidden for days. If the tracker jackers chanced upon him, he was easy prey. I can;t say we were friends, or that we even knew each other, but he was from District 7 too, and that makes me wonder if i should feel more remorse than I do.

I look over at Flint, realising that I haven't asked him what I've been wondering since we formed this alliance. It was time to know the answer.

"Flint… Can I ask you something? I've kind of been wondering about it since I heard you talking with the other Careers?"

"Sure, what did you hear?" He asks, as I sit next to him beside the fire.

"I heard you wanted me as an ally… My question is why?" I watch him slightly warily as he looks straight into my eyes.

"Because… Regan Willoughby… I am completely and utterly-"

A parachute lands between us, interrupting our moment. I never heard the rest of that sentence, but I could guess where it was going.

"In love with a Career. Well done." Said a little note stamped onto the metal box. Silvialla was funny, but that wasn't irony, I guess. Without him I would be dead.

In the box there was more medicine, which was great; we really needed it.

"And there was you saying you weren't going to get any parachutes." Flint grins. I just smile at him, wondering about that sentence that he never got to finish.

* * *

THANKS FOR READING! :D Please review/follow/favourite! :D It means a lot to me 3 Also, I'd love it if you could check out the other fanfic I'm writing, and it basically includes a character from the main fandoms, to that would be nice :)

Lucy xxx


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

After applying the medicine to my many stings I hand the pot to Flint. He looks into it and frowns.

"You didn't use very much." He remarks, not taking any. I don't know why. He has stings too, and I know mine hurt like hell. I shrug this off.

"You need it too. I didn't want to use all of it."

"But you got stung more than me!" He protests. I look at him and raise an eyebrow.

"And? I'm ok. Really." I say, but I can see that he clearly doesn't believe me. I sigh. "Just use the medicine ok? I owe you."

He watches me, uncertain, as he applies the medicine. I'm still replaying the moment from earlier, over and over in my head. Was that a bad move? Yes it could mean more sponsors, but if I somehow end up as a victor, he'll be dead. And even thinking of that now seems impossible.  
Saying goodbye is going to be so much harder.

The sun is down now and we agree to start a fire. If the careers want to come, let them come. We're prepared. We're armed. And we're stronger then they think. Much stronger. Even with our injuries. Not only that, but we'll watch each other's backs. The careers are quick to abandon their own, which was made clear to me as soon as the boy from eleven arrived at the bottom of that tree.

So we start the fire.

Flint finds some chestnuts in the forest a little way off and we roast them over the fire.

And I'm happy.

I don't know how. But I'm happy. I thought that I would have a horrible, nightmarish and above all, short time in the games. None of that is true. Yes, I have been chased. Yes I have been stung. But I'm not hungry, thirsty, lonely or dead. And I'm having a hard time believing it, but it's true.

"Penny for them." Flint remarks, smiling.

"What?" I ask, looking up.

"Penny for your thoughts." He grins. I laugh softly. I admit I get very easily distracted.

"Sorry. There's just a lot to think about." I explain, weaving my hand, dismissively.

"Oh yeah? What exactly are you thinking about?" He asks, raising a teasing eyebrow. I roll my eyes and smile at him.

"Many, many things. Too many things really. You?"

"Much the same." He replies carefully. To be honest, I don't think it's wise either of us share our actual feeling on national television. Because a _lot_ of my true feelings consist of a defeated Capitol.

Not exactly something I'd be willing to share on national television. I look up at Flint.

"What were you saying earlier? About why you wanted me as an ally?" I ask him and he laughs.

"Subtle." He remarks, looking sideways at me and smiling.

"I'm always subtle. Subtle is my middle name." I joke, crossing over and sitting next to him. He smiles into the fir, seemingly too shy to look at me.

"What?" I prompt. He opens his mouth to say something, and then shuts it gain, thinking better of it. I wait, slightly impatiently while he collects his thoughts.

"I wanted you as an ally because… I…" He tries, but I've had enough of his mumbling. I grab his face with both my hands, turn him towards me and kiss him. It was a bit of a violent introduction, but _tah-dah_ nonetheless. He doesn't pull away either, which is a bonus. It strikes me that the Capitol can see this too… As can my family. OH HOW MARVELOUS. I sigh and pull away.

"Well… You pretty much summed it up." Flint mumbles and I laugh.

"Fantastic." I reply and poke at the fire again. I can feel him watching me.

He's brave, but it is very probable that now the games will not be in his favour. Was this doing this to let me live? Or was it just an angle. To be fair,_ I_ kissed _him_, which kind of makes me the bad one if it is an angle. But then again, because I kissed him, it kind of makes it my choice. I sigh and poke at the fire. Am I in love with a career?

I look up at him carefully. Are the other boys from 1 as handsome as him? If they are, District 1 does seem like the preferable place to live.

Suddenly his head snaps up, and I turn way, embarrassed.

"Did you hear that?" Flint asks me. I shake my head and strain my ears.

"Hear what?"

"Not sure, some footsteps I think…" He whispers back. I listen out and I'm caught by surprise.

Not only steps, laughs, _loud_ laughs: the Careers. They were close. So close now. Flint was meant to be looking for them. If thy see him now he's dead meat.

Too late.

"Flint?" asks Neptune. "What are you doing with her?"

I feel like rolling my eyes. _Yes_, because him being with me is _really_ the problem right now. That is of _course_ the biggest issue that we must deal with at the moment. I look them over.

They're not in the best of conditions, but then I suppose, neither are we. Neptune was the one with most stings, and the majority of them were on his face. The boy who had once been handsome was now almost unrecognisable. He also had a big scar on his hand, and I can tell by the swelling that if it isn't treated, he'll lose it. Aquette is the one in best conditions out of the three (surprise, surprise); she only has a few stings and the odd scratch n her body. Squirrel is by far the worst: she not only had stings, but in place of her right eye, there was an empty, bloody socket. I get the feeling it was torn out in the fight between her and the boy from eleven. It scares me, but I know that I can't let that slip into the capitol.

"You know, I've always admired your eyes." I say, coyly. I know she hates people making fun of her. I see her mouth twitch into a snarl and her hand moves to her belt.

"I'm going to kill you!" she exclaims drawing out a knife, but Aquette stops her. She's smirking.

"Wait. First of all, I want to know something, just to make the situation more dynamic, you know." she says. "Flint…" She stops and laughs.

"Are you in _love_? I remember training. You couldn't take your eyes off her." She smirks. Flint scowled and stood up.

"Yes." He replied, resolute. My eyebrows shoot straight up my forehead and I stare at him. It's a nice thing to say. It kind it makes me feel protected (not that I need it). On the down side, the careers know now, which I'm sure will work only to our disadvantage.

"Oh _dear_, Flint." Squirrel shakes her head, in mock sadness. "You must have known that is you crossed us you would die within the first ten seconds?" I hate her mocking tone. It's annoying.

"I don't care, I just want her safe." Flint replies. Oh. That's sweet. I smile slightly, despite our predicament. I stand up too.

"Not that I need keeping safe." I remind him, nudging him slightly. He nods.

"Sorry."

"No, It's… fine." I smile at him. Meanwhile the careers are watching us, frowning. I shake my head dismissively and wrench the trident out of the ground.

"Does this belong to you?" I ask Aquette snidely. She laughs, maliciously.

"Don't care," she answers me. "You can keep it if you want, you'll be dead in a minute anyway." And she takes a trident much larger and sharper than mine out from behind her back. "A gift from my mentor."

Oh _joy_, an embarrassing moment in front of the entirety of Panem. _Awesome_.

But Flint stands up with the sword in his hand. I stand up too but now with the axe; I really don't know how to use the trident and it has no value against Aquette's. Squirrel had a large knife that I get the feeling I've seen before… Oh. It was from the boy from 11. Neptune has a spear, and he's holding with such reassurance I'm really starting to worry.

So there we were: the five of us in position, ready and poised to attack.

* * *

Please review! :D They mean a lot to me, and if you enjoyed it, i'd love it if you could follow/favourite the story! :D THANK YOU FOR READING! :D

Lucy xxxx


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

I must admit, I'm taken by surprise. There's a bark somewhere off to my left, and our entire party looks to see.

And stood there, in plain sight, are five wildcats. When I say wildcats, I mean more like large lynxes. They're mutts. No animal's eyes are the exact colour of blood. No other animal stinks of roses. And no other animal has green saliva dripping from its snarling lips.

"RUN!" I scream. No one needs to be told twice. We're sprinting off into the forest, not caring about which district we're from. None of us remember we're enemies. Not even Aquette. We just run, because our weapons are one thing; the mutts are quite another.

That's when it happens.

Neptune trips. And then the cats are upon him, ripping and tearing. We continue to sprint off. I'm trying to block out the sounds of Neptune's screams as the mutts tear him limb from limb. None of us thought about stopping to help. It's self-preservation or nothing in the games. So we keep sprinting through the forest, trying to outrun the mutts. I can always climb a tree, but I have a feeling the lynxes can too, and I'll be no better off above ground.

The cannon sounds. Neptune is dead and there's five of us left. So many died so quickly. And there we have a brutal reminder of the capitols power. I hate them for it. I hate every single one of them. Because now I'm running away from one of the most lethal threats I will veer face.

I'm running alongside my enemies. Running alongside the person who I suppose has become my first love.

Running for my life.

Aquette throws her trident to a mutt. Good. One less problem to deal with. I start running but I can see two of them are following me. I remember watching the 38th Hunger Games, where the tributes were chased by mutts that duplicated by the minute. They climbed the Cornucopia to escape. Didn't survive for long, seeing as they then were left only with each other. There was a bloody fight to the death after they'd escaped from those mutts. It makes me shiver thinking about it. But the Cornucopia is too far away right now, and I by the time I reach it, I'll be dead.

I can see Squirrel running as fast as she can from one of them, and I watch as she takes a knife out and slices the mutt's skin. Whether or not it actually made an impact is debatable.

I'm still running. Where? I don't know. My legs are directing my body to my lake, and Squirrel starts following me. I think she's only doing that because she thinks I know where I am going, although that, I suppose, is true.

After a long, frantic period of running, some of which I spend trying to shake both Squirrel and the mutts off, we reach the lake, but there are two mutts behind us. If I had to guess, I'd say the others were either finishing off Neptune, or going after Aquette and… And Flint.

I start trying to think of a solution. There's no way we can fight these. But… Every mutt is controlled by the capitol, and every mutt has some part of them that proves it. These mutts have a silver metal collar with the symbol of Panem on it, and I suppose it's from that spot tht they're controlled. If I could somehow get at it…

Wait a minute. They're made of metal. Electricity is the only thing keeping them moving. The Capitol doesn't like using live animals. It creates its own because sometimes the animal survival instinct is too strong and the mutts back off. So usually, instead of genetically engineering, they make full out… robots, I suppose. If I can lead them to just a little water…

It's only a possibility, but I'm desperate. And unfortunately, I can't do it alone; I need Squirrel's help.

"Hey! Girl from 2!" I call. I really don't know Squirrel's name, but if I called her that, I was not going to receive help. "I have an idea, I don't know if it will work, but…" I trail off, waiting for a response. We're still running and both breathless. She turns her head to me, sharp eyes mocking.

"What idea "girl from 7?" She spits. Nice of her to make fun of me at a time like this. But I can see the panic and the insincerity behind her eyes, so I let it slide.

"Water!" I shout. She looks at the lake, then at the mutts and realizes what I mean. We're at the lake now. This should be easy.

We both run straight into the water, leading the mutts in after us. I turn to look and I see them run straight into the water. For one sickening moment I think about the fact that they could be able to swim. What if they're not normal mutts, just genetically-engineered cougars. Because if they are, I bet they can swim a whole lot better than me.

It's just then that their collars start to throw sparks. I stand back as their joints creak and they fall into the water, inactive and harmless. Squirrel and I both stand there for moment or two, breathless and soaking. It's hard to remember that we're enemies. She turns to me.

"How very clever of you." Squirrel remarks, sarcastically. Charming. As much as I would have liked to kill her there and then, I had to go. Not only would she start attacking me at any moment, Flint was out there in the forest somewhere, face to face with a mutt.

Before squirrel has a chance to say anything more, I start running, and running, and running. I didn't hear a cannon, which is a good sign, but that doesn't mean that Flint is okay. I know we're allies, but for me... he was more than that.

And in that moment, I realise that it's true. I've fallen for him. I'm in love with him. I'm in deep trouble because of it, but it doesn't matter. Because I love him and that's all that matters.

And right now he's in danger.

"Flint!" I scream into the darkness. "I'm here! Where are you?"

No answer.

"Flint!" I cry, desperately.

No answer.

Maybe he can't hear me; maybe I'm not near enough… Or maybe the mutt got him, and he's living his very last moments. I shudder. I can't think about that. I have to keep looking.

"Regan!"

Oh my God! That's Flint: He's alive!

"Flint!" I call back, my voice breaking with the relief.

He continues shouting, and from the pain in his voice I can tell he's been injured, but I am going to save him as he did with me.

Then I see him. In the middle of a tree lined clearing, opposite a mutt. He has a sword out in both hands, poised to attack, but that mutt's claws are just as good. The mutt's growling at him but it's not attacking. Then I realise why.

The Capitol controls the mutt's actions. They were waiting for me to get there.

And here I am.

The mutt leaps into the air towards him, claws out. Just because they wanted me to watch him die.

Before it can reach him though, I hurl my axe and it sinks into the mutt's neck. It still collides with Flint and he falls back onto the grass, but it's dead before it hits him. Flint just painstakingly pushes it off.

I saved Flint. He's alive, and he's right next to me.

"I love you." he whispers me and then kisses me.

I can tell he's injured. It's worrying me so much, that I barely register the kiss as out of the ordinary. We're both bleeding, and we need medicine urgently.

"How did you kill the other mutts?" He asks me, teeth gritted in pain.

I tell him everything. How Squirrel and I ran to the lake, leading the mutts in. I told him about how they died.

"The Capitol didn't think you were that smart." he says, smiling. "You'll get sponsors. They'll realise how much you're worth." I smile at him, and he taps my nose lightly with his finger, a move which I know the audience will love.

We lie on the ground next to each other, prepared and tired enough to sleep. It occurs to me as I close my eyes that Squirrel will have told Aquette about my lake. It's no longer my safe haven.

It's a death trap.

* * *

THANK YOU FOR READING! :D Could you please review this? It doesn't take long and it means the world to me, so please? Pretty please?

Lucy xxx


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

We spend the next day gathering food, drinking and refilling our water bottles. I try hunting for some food and I catch a few fish, along with a squirrel. It won't last past the day, seeing as we're both hungry. We've spent the day hardly talking, but as the sun sets, the sky turning a pretty burnt orange, it seems like a good time to talk.

"Thank you for coming to find me." Flint says, as we start the fire. The way I figure, Squirrel and Aquette are separated, but they both know there's a chance I found Flint. We're effectively inviting them to our little camp out with the smoke signals, but seeing as we're armed and have fared fairly well after the _night of the mutts_, it's unlikely they'll turn up. I know I wouldn't.

"It's no problem. You would have done the same for me." I dismiss, smiling at him.

"Of course." He smiles and hugs me softly. The fire crackles and spits some as we turn our attention back to keeping warm: because the night is becoming severely cold and we have no tent or sleeping bags. My extra jacket is a blessing in this temperature.

"Hey… Regan. What's district seven like?" Flint asks me. I tilt my head. It's an odd question.

"Why?"

"Just asking. No… I guess I just want to know what it's like for you back at home." He answers, shrugging.

"Um… Well… District seven is huge. Most of our houses are near the felling forests and it's not… Not exactly what I would call an affluent district. Most families are very poor." It occurs to me that as I speak, the capitol are probably turning their cameras to the other tributes. I wonder how my comments will be taken. The Capitol is all too happy to neglect us, but when we point it out, it's an outrage. And I don't care. I will continue to shame them. "We get by… I mend clothes and we get milk from the cow. I suppose… I suppose seven is nice to look at. The forests are lovely. You have to be careful though. We have a lot of casualties where people, mostly children, wander into the felling forests and they're crushed by trees being cut down for lumber. We lose a few people a year to the bears in the forest. But we get by." I tell him, trying to think. I wonder if the Capitol has censored this information. They don't want the districts to know about one another. I'm smiling on the inside.

I showed them up. "What's district one like?"

He laughs, bitterly.

"Well there are no trees; that's for sure. It's very industrialised. We make things like books, make up, paintings, furniture… There are a lot of factories. And almost everyone works in them. I can't yet, because I'm not old enough. I go to the district one training academy. We train for these games. We're meant to. We grow up, with the Capitol always looming over us. Commanding us." He stops talking, as if he's afraid he's gone too far, as if he's said too much. I fear he has too. The Capitol won't take kindly to this conversation. I don't care. They've already taken everything from me: How else can they hurt me.

My grandfather always said that mental scars hurt far more than physical pain. You remember the darkest hours of your life, whereas cuts heal. He's right, and I've only just realised to what extent.

I sigh, rubbing my hands together; trying to keep warm. It's an effort. There's a soft but icy breeze running through the trees and I'm struggling against the cold. Flint shivers.

We're in for a long night.

When I awake, I jump up, panicked. I didn't realise I'd fallen asleep and I could be in huge trouble. We haven't moved location for two nights, and anything could be creeping up on us.

Looking around us desperately, I realise everything's ok. Flint is still here and the fire has burned itself out. We're still OK. I shake Flint awake, stamping out the dying remains of our fire.

"We need to move. We've stayed too long."

"Where too?" He asks blearily, getting to his feet. I shrug.

"Not sure. Water I think." I say as I look through our supplies. We have a long day of hiking ahead of us, and I don't think half a bottle of water between us is going to go very far.

"Let's get going." I say, pulling the backpack over my shoulders and pulling Flint to his feet.

"Yeah. Maybe they'll give us a free day today." He muses. I know what he means. He means that perhaps the mutts won't attack us today. That the Gamemakers will make no effort to drive us together. I hope not. I'm tired and I haven't eaten much recently. My stomach growls.

"We need to find food as well. How are you at hunting?" I ask.

"I'm ok. Not great certainly. But I can catch a few things." He replies as we begin walking off into the forest.

"Better than nothing." I grin. He nudges me playfully in the ribs.

The walk is surprisingly peaceful. And that's why I'm scared.

Maybe the Gamemakers are giving us a free day. But I have a feeling it's a little more sinister than that. I think that some larger threat is being devised right at this moment, and that we may not have very long left.

"It's quiet today." Flint remarks. I nod slowly. Too quiet. I don't like it. I feel on edge. There's electricity in the air. Like the calm before the storm.

Which begs the question; What exactly is this storm? And will I make it through to the other side?

It's evening now. And the storm has begun. It began with a great rumbling roar of thunder, making me jump and my ears hurt. Then a blindingly bright burst of lightning. Then the rain. The pounding, thick, heavy rain, so powerful it hurts my head with every drop.

The night has already come and the storm is still invading us. We use leaves to make a kind of cup to drink water, satisfying at least one of my needs. A piercingly shrill sound penetrates the night, barely audible above the rain.

It is not a cannon, but screams. All of them from Squirrel. Angry hysterical screams into the heavens, cursing everyone and everything in the world.

I think the object of the storm is to annoy us, because it's funny. It's funny to see teenagers who are _fighting to death,_ trying not to get _wet_. I imagine Squirrel: a tiny girl whom everything angers; jumping everywhere and releasing hysterical shrieks. Very funny.

We've been in the same place, under a tree in the least damp place we could find, for nearly for three hours, since the rain began, waiting for some sign that the storm was stopping. Maybe the Gamemakers want us to move a little bit.

"Let's get out of here." I say, looking out into the rain, unable to see more than 10 feet ahead.

"But… We'll get even wetter." Flint protests. I turn to him.

"The rain is designed to bring us together. They want us to fight, and the longer we postpone this, the worse off we'll be. If it's a fight they want, then it's a fight they'll get." I tell him. He nods determinedly.

I know the Capitol are waiting for a kiss under the rain instead of this, so I kiss his lips for just a second leaving him with no objections.

"Let's go." I smile.

We run instead of walking, trying to gain some ground and we can't avoid falling down because of the slippery ground. But we laugh instead and just help each other. It could be worse.

It's just then that I look up and notice the colour of the sky. It's red. What? I stare harder t it and frown as I try to stare through the thick rain. As I stare I have to wipe my eyes because the rains getting in them. I cry out. It hurts more than it should. I wipe my face and my hand comes away red. Am I bleeding? I look at my clothes and they're entirely red too.

"What's this?" I ask Flint.

"Blood. Are you alright?!" He asks, panicking. I nod. I look up at the red sky again and then I cry out in alarm. It has a sick, metallic taste to it.

It's raining blood.

I scream and flail backwards under a tree. How can it be raining blood?! I know why they've done it. I'm terrified and I'm trying to get way, but only tripping over. Where did they get the blood from?! How many people did they have to drain to get this much?!

Flint and I are running away as fast as we can, already drenched in the hot, metallic, red liquid. As we run I notice the new feature of the never-ending rain. It hurts. Each patter of rain sends a small but noticeable spike of pain through my skin. It's rocks. Tiny rocks. We need to find a place with a roof, and there's only one possibility: the Cornucopia.

Then it hits me, the real object of the Gamemakers. I turn to Flint, who's trying to keep the rain off his head.

"I know what they want. They want us to walk and walk and walk. The rain will get worse, worse and worse, until we finally realise the solution." I tell him, my stomach dropping. "They want us- _all_ of us… To move to the cornucopia. We have no choice."

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THANK YOU FOR READING! :D Please review/follow/favourite: IT MEANS A WHOPPING GREAT AMOUNT TO ME :D

Lucy xxx


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

It's a clever move on the Gamemakers part, I'll admit. And I hate them for it.

Flint is protecting me with his body, one arm over my back and head, trying to shield me from the rocks. He's doing a good job shielding me, but we can't go on like this. What if this lasts for days? We'll die! One rock is all it would take. One rock on one insignificant part of my skull would kill me.

"Flint, I can't let you take the pain like this!" I cry. "We both know you can't!"

"I'm doing this to _protect_ you! Just _let_ me, OK?! I don't want you hurt!" He protests.

"Flint, what if the rain lasts days!? If we continue like this, we'll die! There's no question about it!" I shout. "There's only one place we can go, and you know exactly where I am talking about!" I cry, my voice breaking with the shouting. The rain is so loud and squirrel is still screaming.

"The Cornucopia." he says.

"Yes." I answer.

There's no other solution. We could walk through this forest for days and it wouldn't stop until the Capitol had seen some bloodshed.

We're running through the forest, covering our heads. The rocks raining down from the skies are becoming larger and heavier and they hurt more and more with each drop. I'm betting it isn't long until they start becoming hot and volcanic. If that happens… one blow to the head would kill us.

I scream as a very large rock falls in front of me. If that had been a direct hit, I'd be dead. Very dead. At the very least, I'd be in some kind of torturous coma, unable to think, unable to speak, unable to move. And I'm not having that. So we keep on running.

The rocks hurt so much. They're raining down on my back and it's making me numb. I can feel the bruises already forming.

"We have to stop!" Flint shouts.

"We can't! It won't get any better if we stop! We have to get moving! The cornucopia is the only shelter!" I yell back to him. We keep running.

I'm crying. It hurts so much, and I can't do this anymore. I can't do this. I can't do this. I could just lie down here right now and let the rain take me.

And then I see it. The cornucopia, glinting in the moonlight, is up ahead. And it looks as if we're the first ones here, which is all the better. Now the cornucopia is ours to defend.

"Come on!" I scream to Flint. No reply. "Flint?" I ask turning. And then I scream again.

"FLINT! FLINT NO!" I scream as I see him lying on the ground. A rock embedded in his skull.

I run over to him and grab him by the arms, pulling him into the cornucopia. I lean over him and scramble around his chest, searching for his heartbeat. I'd guess he has a minute, maybe even a few, left.

I've lost him.

"FLINT! FLINT! Flint… Flint please don't go! Please… Please don't leave me here!" I cry. His eyes flutter open and he stares blankly at me. His mouth opens slightly and he tries to speak. The tears are rolling down my cheeks, and there's no way I'm going to be able to stop them.

"Stay with me." I beg. He closes his mouth and I can see the tears forming in his eyes. The rain is still falling outside.

I wonder if it will ever stop.

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SORRY. But thank you for reading :) PLEASE REVIEW! :D It means the world to me when you do :) Danke 3

Lucy xxx


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The light outside is dim, and no one is here but us. The rain is harmless again. Wet, and heavy, but harmless. I'm crying, holding Flint's injured head in my lap.

"Please…" I sob, my voice cracking. "Please stay with me." I beg, my tears falling onto his face. I close my eyes and try to keep my weeping quiet.

"I will." He says.

My head snaps up immediately.

He answered me! He's covered in blood, but the light outside is brighter and I can see his injuries a little better. A small hole in his forehead, but a deep one nonetheless. He spoke to me. That means he's still OK. I hope it means he's still OK. He needs medicine; good and expensive medicine, or if not, I'll lose my ally. If not, I'll lose my love. If not, I will be unhappy and lonely for the rest of my short life. If not… Flint dies. It's as simple as that.

Suddenly the rain stops. There's no sign of any other tributes. Maybe the rain was not as bad in their parts of the arena. I turn back to Flint.

He can't walk, but we can't stay here: the Careers will find us. I have to take him away from here by myself.

I could leave him to die. Right here in the cornucopia. If his injury doesn't finish him off, something else will. Mutt or Tribute. It's all the same once you're dead. But… I know what is right and what is not. He's saved me twice. First, at the tree without even knowing me, and then again in the Tracker Jacker field.

"Flash," I whisper to him, "I'm going to take you to the Lake, to our lake. And… I'm going to have to carry you." He mumbles something in reply and I bite my lip. For now I'm going to have to assume he said OK. I slide my hands under him and painstakingly lift him up. He's not that heavy but he's not that light either. Unfortunately now, being so muscular isn't a pro. "Come on, let's go." I sigh, as I heave him up.

"No!" He manages to say, fairly loudly. I almost drop him in surprise. "Leave me here." He whispers. I shake my head, knowing full well he can't see.

"Flint, it's only a small injury, we can get medicine." I try to convince him. "Come on, think of your family, of your friends. Think of me" I keep insisting but he shakes his head. "Flint, if you don't let me take you, I'll stay here. Then we're both at risk."

He says nothing. Then he reluctantly nods. He's not going to stay here. I smile sadly and then start walking, out of the cornucopia and into the morning sun.

He's not that heavy because of the little food he's eaten in these past few days, but he's not a "tiny weak man" either. What I'm hoping against hope for is a safe journey to the lake. If I bump into a career, I'm dead. I can't fight Aquette, Squirrel or the boy from 11 in this condition. But then I remember something: Squirrel and Aquette could be at the Lake... at _my_ Lake! There's also another possibility… They were staying somewhere as sheltered as they could find, but now they can travel, and they'll head to territory they know. The cornucopia. The Careers won't like a simple, natural place, with a lake with fishes they don´t know how to catch. They prefer somewhere where every tribute can find them. Somewhere with provided, safe food. Somewhere safe and sheltered. Somewhere central in which to fight to the death.

I limp through the forest, Flint in my arms. It's hard going but eventually I reach the lake, and it's deserted. Oh, how very lucky we are. I carry Flint to the edge of the lake and lay him down. God, I hope he's alright. I clean Flash's injury, to try and banish any infections.

"I'm here." I whisper to him. "And I'm gonna do everything I can to save you. You'll be with me."

He smiles weakly, his eyes still closed. I lean down a kiss him gently, trying to ignite the Capitol's interest and sympathy.

Sponsors, _please_, send us something.

Maybe I need to talk to him a little bit more, because the medicines are very expensive, especially now that Flash needs it desperately. If he can even talk at this point.

"Tomorrow it's going to be a calm day, don't worry." I say to him. "After this, nobody wants more…" I can't say deaths. I can't think of anything worse I could say. "You will be okay, Flash. You're strong."

He points the ground next to him, telling me to lie down next to him. What do I have to do now? Kiss him? Hug him? Say something sweet, or smart? _I just want to be me._ I am not pretending I love him, and he isn't either. I frown for a moment. Is he... my boyfriend? It sounds so trivial, considering we're in the Hunger games.

It's just then a little parachute lands over us. That was all I had to do. Say nothing, just stay with him.

I open the pot and there I can see a shiny orange cream. I take some and spread it onto his injury, cautious not to press too hard. I immediately notice his relief. Maybe he'll be ok.

I take some more and spread it softly over his forehead again. I want him to say something. I need to hear his voice gin: I need to make sure he's OK.

I don't want to lose my hero. His eyes open and stare at me, frowning slightly, and smiling at the same time.

"I feel better. Much better actually." he says and smiles.

Suddenly the anthem booms loudly in the arena. But, as I expected, there were no faces in the sky. Five of us left. Me, Flint, Aquette, Squirrel and the boy from Eleven.

Nothing could be better than this. Flash and me, together, _alive_. We sleep only when we get bored watching the stars. Tomorrow I plan to give him more medicine. I also pray that the other Tributes finish each other off, because I don't think I'm strong enough to go up against them. If Aquette gets tired of Squirrel and kills her, it would be a blessing. Flint is alive, and he's the strongest person I've ever met, and I think he is doing this more for me than for him, that's why I love him so much.

And it's final. Decided. I love him.

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THANKS FOR READING! :D please please please review, even if you don't normally, because it means so much to me and I'll love you forever if you do :)

Lucy xxx


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

I wake up and Flint is still sleeping. His injury is becoming a deep purple scar, which I try to take as a good sign. Deciding that I can let him sleep for a little while longer, I fish a bloffinch with my old method and cook it. Then I take some medicine and smear it all around his wound.

Finally I decide to wake up him.

"Hey," I smile. "Are you feeling any better?"

He simply nods, and I can't ask for anything more. He's weakened and is making an enormous effort just to keep his eyes open. There is no medicine left after using the last today, although maybe his district can buy him something; they're richer than mine.  
We have food and water but audience will get bored if nothing happens today, perhaps just talking will keep them entertaining. Let's pray for that.

"Did you kill anyone at the Cornucopia?" I ask him.

He shakes his head.

"And Careers stuck with you?"

"Yes." he answers me shaking. "I was the one that brought them weapons when we went walking, at night. Then… then…" It must be really hard for him to talk. "That was my duty; we planned it before the Games."

I don't know if what Flash is saying is true, but I understand his idea. Nobody likes tributes planning things before the Games, so maybe that will make Gamemakers angry and plan something to kill Squirrel or Aquette. That, or they'll kill us.

"Do you know how many days we've spent here in the arena?" I ask him: I lost my count.

"Today… from today it's been a little over one week."

Okay. Making Flint talk isn't a good idea, he needs medicine NOW, if not... If not, he dies.

He smiles at me but I can see he is really hurt.

"Flint, you're gonna get better. You just need medicine." I tell him firmly, opening my eyes wider to make him realize we need to make a good show if we want sponsors. "Imagine yourself, in your district again, with your family, a better house, your name never again in the reaping…"

"I don't care about that," He murmurs. Ah good. He understood; the sponsors like romance. "I don't care if I'm back again, if I'm rich, or even if I have no chances of going back to The Hunger Games. I will be the most miserable guy in Panem."

"Why?"

"Because I won't have you with me." He murmurs. It's good to see he's got it, but of course talking isn't good for him either. "Regan, without you I'm dead."

I stare at him.

I can almost hear the sighs in the Capitol, but by now some parachute would have arrived, and it hasn't. But I don't care. Nobody has ever said anything like that to me before.

"Attention, tributes." Calls the voice of Venius Smith, our beloved narrator of the Games. "First of all, congratulations of getting at this point of the Games, there's only five of you left, well done." He commends.

This means nothing to me. I don't care about where we are in the games. What's happening? Are we being invited to a feast?

"You are all invited to a Feast at the Cornucopia. It will start at dawn. As we can see, you all need something, desperately."

It's as I thought.

This also means we're not the only ones in bad conditions. Which is good.

"At the cornucopia, you will see a bag with your district number. If you reach it, your chances of surviving will be considerably higher, so think on it twice, before declining."

A feast. I have to go and risk my life if I want to save Flint. Although... There's something strange about this. There are going to be two packs for us, because we belong to different districts. Flint will have medicine, obviously. So what is in my pack?

What do I need desperately?

"Regan, no." he says to me before pulling the axe out of my reach. "Yeah, I saved you, but you already saved me too. I can survive like this, don't go."

"Look, I don't care what you say, I _can't_ leave you like this. You'll die."

"And that matters?" His face is shining. What is he talking about? "We are not helping each other by saving each other. I've wanted to tell you this since we got together, but I didn't know how."

"What are you talking about?"

"Listen." I've never seen him this serious. "Burning that tree was a good idea; I just stopped them to save you. I stayed there when the other Careers started to fight, to defend you. I took the risk of being killed by the other Careers to be with you, I nearly died when I save you from the tracker jackers and the same happened when I sheltered you against the rock rain."

Why's he saying this? Is he lamenting it?

"I don't regret any of that. You trusted me, and showed me this place, you gave me food and weapons. You ran when the mutts appeared to save me and kill that thing, and now here you are, saving me again." He sighs. "We do this because we love each other, but we also both know that there _is only one victor_, only one district will be fine. And mine has a lot of victors. Your family needs this more than mine."

"They can survive! I just repair clothes: I'm not worth anything!" I shout in fury. "You want to die just because your district had more victors than mine? That's the most stupid thing I've ever heard in my life!"

"Regan, please." He interrupts, trying to calm me down. I'm not doing either of us a favour shouting like this.

"I'm sorry," I say, still annoyed. "Continue."

"We're not going to separate because we are better together. If any of other rivals find us, we die. If we are together, we have a better chance."

So? We're not doing anything productive right now, but I'm positive the Capitol will be unable to tear their eyes away from the screen. He pauses for a moment, possibly due to pain, possibly for effect.

"I want you to live, not me. I you go to that feast, you'll die. Even Squirrel, as you call her, could kill you, and she is half blind."

"So why am I helping you?" I ask him angrily. "If you don't want to live, why am I helping you? I know the answer, Flint, and so do you."

"Because I love you, and you love me." He replies, voice steady despite his wounds. "I would live, just to help you, until we were the last two tributes. Then I would give my life for you. I can't let you do this."

I sit there, not saying a word.

I'm going to go the Feast, and nothing will stop me. I can't let someone I love die like that, and I love Flint. Love is stronger than the Capitol, the audience and these bloody Hunger Games.

"Let's sleep, and then wake up when they show the faces at the sky. There is always a fallen in the Feast." He says, trying to make me feel calmer.

I can't say no: This is too good an opportunity to miss. I lie next to him, until I hear his breathing slow and his body relax.

I take the axe, hide three knives on my pocket, and, trying to make the least noise I can, I leave the lake. I reach the cornucopia faster than I expected.

There I see the five bags, the five numbers. 1, 2, 4, 7, and 11.

The bag marked number one is a tiny little thing; and I'm betting anything it's the medicine Flint needs. The number two bag is also tiny; it could be something for Squirrel's eye, although knowing her, it's probably knives. The blue bag labelled 4, is a big backpack. I wonder what Aquette needs that's so large. Another trident? I have no idea. Then there's my backpack. It's large, but not as large as Aquette's. What do I need desperately? I don't feel particularly shorthanded. Finally the brown bag marked 11, which is another large pack.

There is nobody there. Or at least no one visible to me. Are they waiting for someone to get close and attack? I'm not stupid, they're all waiting for me to get there. I'm the weakest, who still needs something, and I'll be the only one that doesn't want to take more than one.

They expect me to go first.

A huge, lumbering figure appears from the trees to the left of the clearing. It's the boy from eleven, limping out, and glancing around like a frightened deer, or a lynx on guard. I won't attack him; he's four times bigger than me, and I can see the large curved knife in his hands.

That scares me. I climb a tree to hide, thinking maybe from that distance I can see something or someone, but there's no one, except the boy from 11. This is not good. If I go there, I die, and if I don't, they take my backpacks. I don't know what to do! For now though... let's wait.

Then, faster than I can blink, a spear flies from the trees on the opposite side of the clearing, heading straight for the boy from 11. Then I watch, glad to be up my tree, as squirrel and Aquette leap out of the forest and charge straight at him.

Aquette throws her trident at the boy, but misses when he dodges. Squirrel runs up with a knife, screaming hysterically, but the boy ducks and catches her around the neck. He picks the trident up; bracing it to kill Squirrel, but Aquette takes out a knife, throws it and succeeds in opening a large smiling wound in his chest. It's like he doesn't feel the pain or even realize he has a cut.

Squirrel, still stuck in the boy's iron grasp, takes a tiny knife from her pocket, reaches back, and starts jabbing it in his face. The boy screams in pain and throws her to the ground.

I then watch, horror-struck as he holds the trident high, and plunges it into Squirrel's chest.

BOOM.

One less Career, one less tribute, one step closer to home. Squirrel's eyes are still open and glassy, and she's sprawled out in an almost inhuman way.

Well, she died in dignity, evening the moment of her death she was fighting, that was as admirable as it was creepy... She was a Squirrel. Am I making a tribute to the girl that nearly killed me on several occasions? I can't say I will miss her, but I have to admit... she was the funniest tribute of all of us. I feel awful for never learning her name. I wish I had taken the time, just once, to look.

Aquette grabs her backpack and runs. The boy from eleven, whose face was a work of grim art, thanks to Squirrel, takes the trident, his and Squirrel's backpack and runs away. He seems to realises he can't fight in Aquette his condition. I don't think he considered me as part of the attack. I'm not a threat in comparison to Aquette.

So here I am, up in a tree, looking down at two backpacks that weren't stolen just because the tributes were scared to fight. Aquette could be anywhere. She could be waiting for me.

Should I go?

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THANKS FOR READING! Please review, or follow/favourite the story if you haven't already, because it means a huge deal to me 3 Love you all!

Lucy xxx


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Of course I'm going. Flint is near death! If I don't go now, he'll die. There isn't a way around it. It's inevitable if I don't get this medicine.

So here I go.

I grit my teeth and scale my way down the tree, landing too hard on the ground. I stumble, trying to regain my balance, and take out the axe, the feeling I'll need it steadily growing. I grip the handle tightly and step out into the cornucopia clearing, keeping a watchful eye on the woods around me. Deciding I can chance it, I run forwards, sprinting flat out towards the backpacks. I can see both packs. Mine and Flint's.

I've reached the table. Grabbing both packs, Flint's out of necessity and mine out of curiosity, I turn to run and find the boy from eleven stood a few metres in front. Effectively blocking my path.

I swear under my breath and wonder about running. But I knew this was going to happen anyway. The Gamemakers would drive us together at some point. So better now than never, right?

I walk forwards, determined, gripping the axe tightly; holding on for my life. The boy from eleven is not happy about this. I'm not happy either, but we've both realised that the games aren't something _anyone_ is happy about. So we know that we have to hold our heads high and bear it.

It's not like we have a choice.

I begin to run forwards, lifting the axe.

I don't want to do this.

I don't want to do this.

I don't want to do this.

I have to do this.

Having reached him, I swing the axe down; but he manages to block it with his scythe and throws me off to the side. I scramble to my feet and run at him again, but this time it's me who has to defend, because he's swept his scythe at me and I have to duck. I get a quick clear cut at his leg though. He howls in pain as my axe sinks into his thigh and I choke back a frantic apology. He pushes me and I land sprawled out on my back, and he's advancing, scythe at the ready. I roll to the left as the tip of his blade hits the space of grass where my torso had been, not two seconds before. I get to my feet quickly and to my surprise I don't use my axe. Instead I sweep kick him in the head. He wasn't expecting it, and is knocked back by the power behind my kick. I hate myself for this.

_So run. Run. RUN._

It's the voice inside my head again. And it's right. He's in no position to come after me, what with the wound to his leg and my kick to the head, which I expect caused some dizziness. So I run away, off into the forest, heading towards Flint.

He must have woken by now, and is likely annoyed at my absence. No matter.

I'm alive, and I have the backpacks. I need to get back to him soon. I don't have a doubt that his backpack contains the medicine.

It just remains to be seen what is in mine. The backpack marked 7.

What do I need so desperately?

When I get back to the Lake Flint is awake, looking around wildly, until he sees me.

"Hello?" I begin, trying to sound innocent. He squints a little, and I know he's seen the scratches on my face, but also two backpacks, and realizes where I've been. "Look, Flint, I'm sorry, but I had no choice, now we're both going to be good."

"You could have died." he protests, as I walk over.

"Yes, I know, but I _didn't_." I say. "Squir- Freckle wasn't as lucky as me." Then I tell him in detail everything that happened; my wait in the trees, the fight between the careers and 11, and my dash for the backpacks. "Look, I'm sorry I left, I know I took a big risk, but I'm okay.

Besides, the boy from 11 and Aquette are in far worse conditions than I am."

Saying that was strange. Up until now they've been far better prepared, extensively armed, and much, much bigger than me. So why am I alive? Even Shimmer was better than me and she died a whopping six days ago, so why? I had a lot of close shaves, but I'm still here. For me it was a matter of luck surviving at the Cornucopia, but then? I could have been killed by the Careers, and Flint saved me, and now only one of them is alive. I could have been killed by the tracker jackers, but Flint saved me again. I could have been killed by the mutts, but I was smart enough to find a way of killing them, the same goes for the rock rain, but Flint saved me. Now, at the Feast, I could have been killed again, but… Well, I was quick enough to get away.

I open Flint's bag and take the medicine, knowing all the while that my own backpack is lying, teasing and unopened. There are two pots inside Flash's backpack. One medicine is a pearly coloured liquid, a plastic spoon accompanying it. I feed some of it to Flint, and he automatically relaxes, the effect the medicine has is like magic. Then I take the second pot, the same cream we received several days ago, I massage it into his injury, and the pain is visibly receding.

"Feel any better?" I ask him, siling slightly. He laughs, his voice cracking little. It's a strange sound in the arena.

"I feel like a completely different person." He grins, looking down at his injury. "I feel like I can run, hunt… You know… I could probably even fight." he muses. It's true, his face looks alive again, and I have back the Flint I met a week ago. He lies back, closing his eyes. "Thank you, Regan, sorry for what happened a minute ago."

"It's okay, you deserve this, and I had to do something." I say smiling.

I look around, checking the forest once again for assailants, which has become the norm for me. Paranoia is a side-effect of the arena. It's then that I catch a glimpse of my backpack out of the corner of my eye. Curiosity winning over a possible threat, I reach for it, my fingers itching. I have to know what's inside. I unzip it and peer inside. Several objects lie at the bottom of the bag and I reach in and take them out.

The first object is a circular pot. It's a medicine that scars injuries. I suppose I need that; during the Games I've suffer several rather painful injuries, and haven't yet had the time or the medicine to treat them properly. Here I am now with both. Before I examine the other items I take some of it and smear it on my injuries and give the rest to a watching Flint. There... We both feel better, new, in a good enough condition to fight.

The second thing I have inside the bag is a kind of venom we use in my district to hunt; most of the girls use this method, like me, rather than use weapons. We cover the fruit or grass we know the animal eats, and in seconds, we have it. The venom takes most effect through inhalation, although eating it is equally dangerous. But here I have it not to hunt, for something else, and I know which is the Gamemakers purpose. But how do they know about this? Then I realize, as I am one of the eight finalists, my family was interviewed, my brother for sure gave that kind of information. Thank you, Dwight, I love you. Then there is my third gift, and it is something I never expected.

I'm worried about Aquette. If I receive three gifts, she'll receive more than me; after all, her bag was bigger, and her district richer. Flint opens my bag to see what there is inside.

"Don't smell the bottle, it is venom." I advise him. "It's used to hunt, but we can use it for something else."

"And what is this?" he asks taking the third gift.

I stare at Flint as he regards the third gift.

"That, Flint, is a fire starter." I tell him. I dislike fire starters. There have been too many accidents in district 7, where a fire has got out of hand.

As a district that specialises in lumber, fires are _usually_ a problem. And I'm annoyed that I've lugged this great big backpack, halfway through the forest to my lake, and I only have a few small gifts. It might be useful, but I'm still annoyed.

"Well, look. We don't need one. We have matches." He points out. I look up at him, frowning.

"That we do…" I murmur. I take the fire starter and turn it over in my hands. I stroke the pieces together and a large spark flies.

"It's very good…" I mumble. It is. You could start a forest fire with something like-

Oh.

I look at Flash. He hasn't realized yet.

"They want us to… they want us to burn down the forest." I manage to choke out.

This is clever. It's very clever. The Gamemakers always want to drive the remaining four tributes together. So they chose me to do it. They _know_ that I'm going to have immense trouble doing it. I'm from 7. To burn down a forest is unthinkable. I live in a forest. Watching it burn…

What's more, knowing that I did it will be unbearable.

And it will make for great television.

What if I refuse? What if I decide that I'm not going to obey the Gamemakers?

I'm just thinking that when my eyes fall on the bottle of poison. They'll kill me. And it won't be slow. It won't be an easy death. So I'm going to have to burn down the forest. Flint is staring at me.

"What?" I ask him, irritably.

"You don't want to, do you?"

"Of course not. I live in a _forest_ back home." I mutter, staring at the fire starter. "But… This could end the games once and for all." I say, closing my eyes.

There is another problem… Ending the games once and for all means losing Flint. If I die and he wins, we won't be together. If I win, he dies and we get the same result. The only chance we have is if we both die. The Capitol can't reach us then. But I don't want to die. And I'm betting he doesn't either.

So we don't talk about it.

"I feel like tonight's the night." I mumble. Flint nods. It's the last time I'll see the lake. My beautiful, secret, special lake. It's going to burn at my hand.

I'm going to miss it.

We pack up our supplies and begin the walk through the forest. We want to be fairly close to the cornucopia when the fire starts, so we have a chance of getting away. I take one last look at the trees, with their colourful branches. I take one last look at the lake, blue waters sparkling in the dying sunlight. I take one last look at the beautiful surroundings and then turn and walk away.

I don't look back.

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**IT'S BEEN A WHILE. SORRY. I haven't updated for what feels like years, seriously. But what did you think of this chapter? And thoughts? **

**Also to address questions I've been asked, his name was Flash on the original story I wrote, but I changed it to Flint. If it ever says Flash, I'm sorry, sometimes it slips through on the editorial process. **

**Once more, I hope you enjoyed reading this, and please let me know what you thought! **

**Lucy XXXX**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

We of course have to abandon the Lake in order to go to the Cornucopia. We could start the fire in a tree near there, which would theoretically do the most damage. Aquette might be nearby looking at her presents, crying for Squirrel or any of her other dearly departed friends, except of course for Shimmer, who she killed because let's face it... she was useless.

First we have to walk through the part of the woods where I climbed the tree to escape the careers, the spacious part of the wood with the leafy undergrowth. It's the site of the first time I ran into the careers in the arena, and really… The first time I met Flint. And look at us now…

He told me he wasn't going to kill me, simply because he couldn't, and I trusted him. I wonder what would happen if I didn't. To be brutally honest with myself, I'd be dead if he wasn't with me. Who would have saved me from the Careers, the tracker jackers, the rock rain, if not him? And I know I wouldn't have made an alliance with any of the other tributes, purely because I know I'm too proud to ally with someone less skilled than I. After that we wander the windflower meadow, where we received our first parachute, from Flint's mentor. Although it's also where we received the note which gave us the Tracker Jacker warning. It's strange to think I might actually miss all of this. Maybe I just don't want to see it all go up in smoke.

After a short distance we pass the site where the rock rain started. There are still remnants from it lying on the ground, and it surprises me how large some of the rocks are. It's a good thing Flint didn't get hit by any of those, because a rock the size of my fist falling from the sky would have killed him for sure.

This particular spot is only giving us painful memories, so we keep walking, walking and walking. We're both deliberately taking as long as we can, partially because we're tired, and partially because neither of us want to do this. Besides, it might be more beneficial to us if we wait for nightfall; it'll be more difficult for them to run at night, and I know for a fact that they don't have any night glasses. Unless they got them in the backpacks from the feast that is…

"Ugghhhh!" We hear through the trees, and immediately we both stop short. All the cameras will be on us, knowing we're in such close proximity with another tribute.

It has to be Aquette. We're the only two girls in the arena, and that definitely wasn't the boy from 11.

"Flint, did you hear that?" I whisper to him as quietly as I can, and he points in a forward direction, not taking his eyes away from where he was pointing. I peer through the trees and my eyebrows shoot up my head when I finally see her.

Aquette is firing arrows, using a sleek golden bow, at a marked tree, but the arrows are in the shapes of small tridents, and gold as well. So that was her gift? A golden bow with golden arrows? It's very District One, I'll give her that. This could turn out to be really dangerous, because she can throw those tridents even without using the bow, so it's flexible.

We see her aim the bow at a passing fox, but she doesn't point its head or heart, she points on of its legs. She releases the arrow, and it finds its mark. The fox falls. But how… She only shot it in the leg… It wouldn't be dead unless…

Venom! The arrows have venom! Even a tiny scrape could kill you! Maybe she has the same venom I have… If so, we're in trouble.

She sighs and sets the bow down, then opens her backpack. She takes the venom, and I realize it _is_ the same Flint and I have, and she was intelligent enough to cover the arrows with it without killing herself. Then she takes out a blue bottle from the bag and my eyes widen in surprise as I recognize it: plarious. It's arguably the best medicine money can buy. It cures virtually any injury and, at the same time, it'll rejuvenate you. The last thing she takes from inside is a crown.

The victor crown.

I know what the meaning is: you're most likely to win, so act like it. This doesn't reassure me at all. It's an extremely arrogant gift, and I can't believe someone spent money on that. The odds are actually pretty even at the moment. Although, I mean, it's her district that sent her that, and perhaps it'll make her arrogant enough to become vulnerable. Arrogance can kill in the arena. Yu go around thinking you're invincible, and someone will bump you off for not being careful enough.

She puts on the crown and smiles, actually spinning.

I look at Flint and he smiles to me like he's making fun of her. But there's a swift whooshing sound and his face falls.

We both look down and our eyes fall upon the arrow embedded in his chest.

I look back through the trees and see Aquette's smug face of satisfaction. Then, just as I take the axe from my belt, she bolts off into the trees with her weapons and poison, the crown still atop her head.

Flint falls to the ground and I drop down beside him, my cheeks growing wet with tears, my hands fruitlessly wiping at my eyes in an attempt to stop crying.

Many tributes pretend love during the Games, and when they return they just think about how good a strategy that was, but for me, Flint is not a strategy.

Flint is everything.

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**I'M SO SORRY. But look at it this way, at least Regan won't have to kill him... Aquette and the boy from 11 are still out there, AND IT'S ALL COMING TO A DRAMATIC CLOSE. **

**I'm away on holiday for a week now, and I doubt I'll get internet, so I though I'd update it now. REviews are MUCH APPRECIATED AND MORE THAN WELCOME, so feel free. **

**See you in a week guys! **

**Lucy XXXX**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

I'm trying as hard as I can to hold back my tears, because although this is hard for me, I can't imagine what it must be like for Flint. I'm not the one drawing my last few breaths, staring glassy eyed at the sky above, trying to stay here, trying to _live_, and knowing it's futile.

"I'm so sorry." I whisper, my voice catching at the end of the all too simple sentence. I can't say anything more. I'm not going to tell him he'll be ok, because he isn't stupid, and I will not lie to him. We both know he's done for.

"It's not your fault." He murmurs and then gasps with pain, gripping my hand tightly. I can't hold it back anymore. I bury my head in his chest, sobbing my heart out.

Human grief is incredible. It's not something you can begin to imagine until you experience it for yourself, and by that time, you have no desire to think about it at all. I can barely describe the feeling. My heart has been ripped out of my chest and shredded into immaculately fine pieces, all while I watch helplessly. My throat is clogged with the most monstrous, most desperate scream imaginable, and no matter how hard I try, I can't voice it. The scream is contained inside my fragile body, held tightly in my lungs, my veins, my heart, and it's tearing me apart. The pain is like nothing I've ever felt before, and is far worse than any _sting_ or _bite_ or _wound_ or _cut_ that any blade could give me. It hurts my head, it hurts my body and I know that, somewhere inside me, I'm being torn right open; my soul ripping into smaller and smaller pieces.

"I love you." I choke out. It's the only thing I can bear to say. My apology was pointless, because there was nothing I could have done. I could not have known until that last fatal moment. And yet I know I will die, still blaming myself for his death. Because it could have been me. It should have been me.

"I love you too."

And those four small words were the last I ever heard him speak.

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It feels like years before I finally find the courage to leave Flint's ice cold body. I've cried myself out. The sadness has gone and has been replaced with an awful hollow feeling. Nothing seems to affect me now.

And that's just what I need to kill Aquette.

I have no concern about the boy from eleven. Aquette will make it her business to kill him as soon as she can. It's always been me and Aquette, really. Ever since the beginning, I've marked her out as the alpha career tribute… Marked her out as the strongest. And time after time, despite my weakness, we've met up. And time after time, we have failed to kill one another.

Not this time. Not again.

I'm going to do it for Flint.

BOOM, sounds the cannon and it's final.

Now I know there's no chance to save him. I want back those moments when we met, when we saved each other, and when we kissed.

Maybe it's better to lose this, to lose the games; I could be with Flint again. What would I do back home? I know I could easily go back to 7 and assimilate back into normal life, but I'll never really leave.

I always knew that there was only ever going to be one victor… but when you're scared, sometimes you ignore the problem. You choose not to confront it, and you back down like the coward that you are. It's wasted, in the end. Because eventually, you'll have to turn around and face your fears, and look at what's happening around you and _deal with it_ because there's no other choice.

So here I am.

Dealing with it.

I know now that I should have left him when I got the chance. Saved myself the pain. Because here I am, weaker and more unstable than ever, any conviction I once had wiped clean out of me.

I can't do this. I'm a kid. We're all kids. You can't force _children_ to fight each other like this. It's not about suppressing the rebels anymore; it's about mocking us, the districts. They pit us against each other and watch as we brutally murder before we're even fully grown. Even the careers, trained from _birth;_ even _they_ are led like lambs to the slaughter and all because the Capitol needs entertainment. _Entertainment_.

I dry my tears and plant one last kiss of Flint's forehead. It's almost impossible for me to leave him. I take his weapons, because what use are they to him now? The dead do not want for anything.

This is the last time I'm going to see him. Or at least here, because if it goes wrong, maybe I will be back with him today too. I look at the sky, to the audience's eyes, maybe even to the President's eyes. I could break right here. I could hurl every obscenity and every threat and every wretched accusation I could at the sky, but I don't. Because they would kill me and Flint would've died for nothing.

So I simply stand up and whisper 'I love you' for the last time… and walk away as fast as possible: this is killing me inside, and the Capitol will not allow me any more time to grieve.

I enter the forest next to the Cornucopia, which has a huge lake I never found before next to it. Someone could be near, but the trees are so are huge, so this is the perfect place to start the fire. I'm beyond caring anyway.

I choose the biggest tree I can find, which is at the very centre of the forest, ideal to connect it all to everything next to it, I have to remember: as soon as I start the fire, I run from here, I move forwards, and I don't look back for anything.  
Looking for the fire starter inside the red backpack, I remember Flint putting it there, and a fresh wave of pain washes over me. I have to bite

down on my tongue to stop the sob. Before I take it out, I look at the venom. Will I ever get a chance to use this? I look out across the lake holding the small bottle in my hand. Any fights to come will be hand to hand, and bloody. There will be no poison. I grip the bottle of the same venom that killed Flint and hurl it as far as I can out into the lake, where it lands with a dull splash, before sinking beneath the soft, blue surface.

It's time now. Time to burn. Time to run. Time to fight.

10,

Brace yourself.

9,

Feet ready.

8,

Keep calm.

7,

Focus.

6,

Breathe.

5, 4, 3, 2,

Ready.

1.

Go.

I slide the pieces of the fire starter together quickly, generating large sparks and a little flame. The small flames lick at the bark of the tree and it lights immediately. This is all wrong. No normal fire spreads this quickly, or burns this brightly. I watch, horrified as the fires spreads up the tree, trying to think properly. Fire. I have to… I have to run. Run.

I set off towards the cornucopia, my feet falling hard, heavy and fast against the forest floor. No matter. Giving way my position now is not important. Fleetingly, I hope the boy from eleven doesn't die because of me, and that the fire will kill Aquette instead, saving me from the battle I'm dreading most. But I come to my senses. Of course I'll have to fight Aquette; it's revenge, and if there's one thing the Capitol prizes over wealth, and beauty; it's revenge.

And whatever the capitol wants... It gets.

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**I UPDATED AGAIN WOOO! It's all getting pretty intense now though isn't it? So what did we think bout the new chapter? Let me know in the reviews, because they're mega inspirational, and you guys are all awesome. **

**Stay excellent guys, **

**Lucy XXXX**


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